Summer Time
by spacegirl352
Summary: set after season 1 and ignores season 2. chloe ponders what to do about Clark leaving her at the dance. WIP


Title: "Summer Time"  
  
Author: Kristal  
  
Rating: PG  
  
Summary: First week of summer, Chloe starts to deal.  
  
Feedback: I love feedback, I want feedback, but I need constructive criticism and feedback   
  
Disclaimer: nope not mine....*wishes*...nope still not mine  
  
AN: Ok, I'm really bad at titles, so if you have a suggestion please tell me! It's a Work in Progress also and if you want it to end a certain way, just tell me, it never hurts to ask.   
  
"Summer Time"  
  
Boredom causes the mind to work in interesting ways. With school out I have no paper to work on, no homework to do. The eight hours that would normally be spent in class are now left completely open. The four to five hours a night I would spend doing homework, or working on the Torch, are completely free too. What does one do with this much free time? Hang out with friends? Not when one of them left you at the Spring Formal, that's for sure.  
  
I still can't believe he would do that. I specifically told him my fears and what does he do? He leaves me at the dance, alone, with no explanation. Not even a goodbye. I believed him after what he had said in the hallway. He had been so sincere. He was so open and honest about it. At least, that's what I thought.  
  
***  
  
"I have this horrible nightmare, that you are going to rush to the bus station after Whitney leaves and profess your undying love for Lana, and I'm going to be waiting at the gym all alone and if you do that to me Clark I will never speak to you again. Ok?"  
  
"Chloe," Clark kissed my cheek, his lips lingering longer than need be, which was great, and he looked like I was the only one he could see at that moment. "I'm going to the dance with you not by default, but because I want to."  
  
"Alright, I feel better now." I believed him. I thought that he meant it, that every word came from the heart. How could I have been so wrong? I know how, love makes you believe the stupidest things.  
  
***  
  
I turned my back for one second to go receive my cell phone from my purse and he's gone. I thought he would leave, so I turned around after taking a few steps to tell him to come back to the table with me. But he was already gone, without a trace. I asked a few of the people nearby, but they had been too involved in their own 'activities' to notice anyone leaving in a rush.  
  
***  
  
I haven't talked to him for about a week now. He has called me a few times everyday since the formal. I have yet to return his calls. I don't know what I would say to him. Plus, I doubt anything he could say would make me feel any better about what happened.  
  
I have three days until I leave for my internship at the Planet, if I can just keep busy and not become too bored and am able to keep my mind off all things Clark Kent related, I should be able to leave Smallville for the summer with my sanity intact. I'd even be happy if I were to leave with most of my sanity, not all of it has to be intact, just most.  
  
The smell of cookies fresh from the oven travel through the Sullivan household, the smell reaches my nose and pulls me towards the kitchen. A smell that reminds me of when I was younger, when my troubles were so much simpler, when boys were still considered to have cooties and were suppose to be avoided at all cost. Why couldn't life have stayed that way?  
  
"Dad, I didn't know you were going to bake cookies, I would have helped you."  
  
"Chloe, as much as I know you love to help me bake them, I wanted these to be a surprise for you. I know how down you've been feeling recently and thought that we could talk about it over a plate of cookies and milk."  
  
"How very 1960's of you Dad."  
  
"I know its old fashioned, but it always worked when you were younger, so why fix it when it's not broken?"  
  
As I take a seat and grab a cookie, he looks like he has just won the Kentucky Derby.  
  
"Don't you think it worked, Dad, I'm just hungry."  
  
He smirks, knowing that I'll open up now. My dad can read me all to well.  
  
"Well, the spring formal was a week ago, as you know. What you don't know is that Clark left me there to go after Lana."  
  
His look goes from victory to defeat in .5 seconds flat. I think it's a new record.  
  
"Ooh, honey, I'm sure he had a good reason, have you talked to him since then?" He looks so dejected and it didn't even happen to him, it happened to me.  
  
"No, he has called a lot but I just can't talk to him now, not this soon after." I look down into the glass of milk he set out for me. I could look into the white abyss forever. It's so calming, just the white liquid with specks of chocolate chip cookie in it.  
  
"I'm sure he had a good reason for doing what he did."  
  
"Yeah.good reason, I'm so sure."  
  
I get up to leave to my room, but he puts his hand on my arm.  
  
"Give him a chance, at least. Don't shut him out."  
  
"I will dad, don't worry. If not before I leave, then when I get back. I promise." He releases his hand from my arm and I head towards the stairs. "I'm going up to my room, dad."  
  
"Ok, honey."  
  
In my room, I'm constantly reminded of Clark. There are pictures on my wall of our times together. Pictures of him and Pete, him and me, the three of us, even one with his family and my family at a barbeque. I have the sudden urge to just go around my room and pick up everything that reminds me of him and throw it away. If I was to do that, I doubt anything would be left; everything has a way of reminding me of him.  
  
My computer sits on my desk, looking completely lifeless. My computer is hardly ever off; it's my life. I press the power button and it whirs to life. The screen flashes and a reminder menu pops up.  
  
"Pack for Metropolis, you leave in three days."  
  
I love those little reminders. Without them, how would I would I get anything done? As I closed the reminder menu another one popped up.  
  
"Say good-bye to Clark and Pete."  
  
Must have forgotten to change that after Spring Formal. Should I call Clark back and say goodbye? Maybe I should tell him goodbye for good, and just never talk to him again. That would serve him right, but that would be unfair to Pete. Pete deserves to have two best friends that can stand to be in the same room together. Listen to me! I'm making it sound like we're a married couple getting a divorce and Pete is the kid stuck in the custody battle! When did my life turn Dawson's Creek?  
  
I pace my room for the better part of an hour. Should I call him before I leave? Should I call him after I get back from Metropolis? That might be better, I wouldn't be so angry with him then.I don't know what to do! That's it; I'm going to do it.  
  
I pick up the phone and listen to the pulse dial tone. Someone has left a message. Three guesses from whom and the first two don't count. I'll ignore the message for now, I have something more important to do, and before I can think about it, I'm dialing.  
  
The phone rings a few times. He isn't home, that's it. I'll just talk to him when I return. Just as I'm about to hang up, I hear his voice.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
With that one word, my heart stopped, my breath caught, and all the snarky comments I had ever said or thought of escaped my mind. I had called Clark to say goodbye, but could I really do that? Was I strong enough to walk away from my best friend?  
  
"Hi Clark."  
  
Nope, I'm a sucker. After what he did, I swore I would never talk to him again. Yet, here I am, on the phone with Clark Kent.  
  
"Chloe?! You called me back, I'm so sorry about what I did! You have to believe me. I didn't go to Lana to profess my undying love for her, because it's dead. I no longer have 'Lana-blinders', as Pete would say. Chloe you're my best friend, but I hope we can becomes more, if you ever forgive me. Chloe, I love you." Clark had said all of that in one breath and by the time he finished he had to take a deep breath and just wait for my reply.  
  
Wait a second. What?! Had Clark really just said all of that?  
  
"What about Lana? You did leave the dance to go to her."  
  
"I left to save her, not to be with her."  
  
"Clark, just stop. I told you my fear specifically and you carried it out. I don't want to hear it. You left for her when you should have just told someone with better means to go get her and make sure she was safe. You aren't indestructible you could have died! I know you have this messiah complex, but you are only human!"  
  
"I'm not only human." It was barely above a whisper and I don't think I was meant to hear it. He sounded so heartbroken, dejected, and alone. I don't know what he meant by it, but I want to find out.  
  
"What'd you say Clark?"  
  
"Oh, um, nothing Chloe, just forget it. You are still mad at me, so bye Chloe, have fun at the Daily Planet."  
  
Click  
  
What did Clark mean by that "I'm not only human" line? Have the meteor rocks affected him? Maybe that is why he went to save Lana. No, that's not possible, Clark would have told me if he had been affected, if not me then Pete, and Pete knows better than to keep anything meteor related from me.  
  
I'm going to have to watch Clark more carefully now; maybe even do some research about his health recently. With all my anger forgotten and my energy focused on this new development, I say goodbye to my dad and head over to the Kent Farm. 


End file.
